Amid a storm in the eastern Mediterranean, the USS Eisenhower traversed the Suez Canal after traveling through the Red Sea from the Persian Gulf, arriving off of the coast of Syria on Tuesday.

The USS Eisenhower, with its compliment of 8,000 men and eight fighter bomber squadrons, relocated to the eastern Mediterranean in connection to reports that Syrian may be ramping up to utilize its chemical weapons stockpile against the rebels that have been involved in a conflict with their government for nearly two years. The move was in direct response to NATO’s Tuesday strategic decision to deploy their Patriot Missile Defense system to Turkey.

The aircraft carrier, one of eleven in the United State’s ocean-going arsenal, joins the USS Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group at that location. That goup has at its disposal 2,500 marines. This brings the total U.S. assets off the coast of Syria to 10,000 fighting men, 17 warships, 70 fighter-bombers, 10 destroyers and frigates and a guided military cruiser. Some of the ships in that group have the ability to shoot down missiles with Aegis missile interceptors.

There had been widespread talk that Assad was preparing to use Sarin gas on the rebels, but as recently as Tuesday, there was no evidence that Syrian troops had begun preparation to do so. But on Wednesday, Pentagon officials reported that Assad had ordered the mixing of the precursor chemicals to make the gas ready, then additional reports came out that the gas had been placed into aerial bombs and deployed to aircraft ready to deliver them to rebel-held sites.

Sarin was originally developed by Germany prior to World War II for use as a pesticide, but its potential as a weapon was soon realized, and the gas went into mass production, although it was never used against the allies. By the 1950s both the USSR and the United States were producing the gas for warfare puposes, but the United States ceased production in 1956.

Sarin gas is oderless and its victims are not aware of its presence until they begin to show symptoms of exposure to the chemical. Initial symptoms of exposure, which would occur within a minute, include a runny nose, tightness in the chest and constricted pupils. After several minutes, victims of the gas begin to drool, become nauseated and have difficulty breathing. This is followed by loss of bodily functions and convulsions followed by death from suffocation.

The Obama administration hasn’t signalled if they have made any decision to intervene in the Syrian conflict, but with the arrival of the USS Eisenhower, any action can be immediately launched if Syria’s President Assad makes any decision to use his chemical weapons against the rebels.